Part 1 - Get a Lab Appointment and Install Software:
Set up an Account on the Scheduler (FIRST TIME USING NANSLO):
Find the email from your instructor with the URL (link) to sign up at the scheduler.
Set up your scheduling system account and schedule your lab appointment.
NOTE: You cannot make an appointment until two weeks prior to the start date of this lab assignment.
You can get your username and password from your email to schedule within this time frame.
Install the Citrix software: – go to http://receiver.citrix.com and click
download > accept > run > install (FIRST TIME USING NANSLO).
You only have to do this ONCE. Do NOT open it after installing. It will work automatically when you go
to your lab. (more info at
http://www.wiche.edu/info/nanslo/creative_science/Installing_Citrix_Receiver_Program.pdf)
Scheduling Additional Lab Appointments:
Get your scheduler account username and password from your email.
Go to the URL (link) given to you by your instructor and set up your appointment.
(more info at http://www.wiche.edu/nanslo/creative-science-solutions/students-scheduling-labs)
Changing Your Scheduled Lab Appointment:
Get your scheduler account username and password from your email. Go to http://scheduler.nanslo.org
and select the “I am a student” button. Log in to go to the student dashboard and modify your
appointment time. (more info at http://www.wiche.edu/nanslo/creative-science-solutions/studentsscheduling-labs)
Part 2 – Before Lab Day:
Read your lab experiment background and procedure below, pages 1-7.
Submit your completed Pre-Lab Questions (page 3) per your faculty’s instructions.
Watch the Air Track Control Panel Video Tutorial
http://www.wiche.edu/nanslo/lab-tutorials#airtrack
Part 3 – Lab Day
Log in to your lab session – 2 options:
1)Retrieve your email from the scheduler with your appointment info or
2) Log in to the student dashboard and join your session by going to http://scheduler.nanslo.org
NOTE: You cannot log in to your session before the date and start time of your appointment. Use
Internet Explorer or Firefox.
Click on the yellow button on the bottom of the screen and follow the instructions to talk to your lab
partners and the lab tech.
Remote Lab Activity
SUBJECT SEMESTER: ____________
TITLE OF LAB: Uniform Motion
Lab format: This lab is a remote lab activity.
Relationship to theory (if appropriate): In this lab you will learn about motion of bodies under
constant velocity.
Instructions for Instructors: This protocol is written under an open source CC BY license. You may
use the procedure as is or modify as necessary for your class. Be sure to let your students know
if they should complete optional exercises in this lab procedure as lab technicians will not know
if you want your students to complete optional exercises.
Instructions for Students: Read the complete laboratory procedure before coming to lab. Under
the experimental sections, complete all pre-lab materials before logging on to the remote lab.
Complete data collection sections during your online period, and answer questions in analysis
sections after your online period. Your instructor will let you know if you are required to
complete any optional exercises in this lab.
Remote Resources: Primary – Air Track; Secondary – Launcher.
CONTENTS FOR THIS NANSLO LAB ACTIVITY:
Learning Objectives .......................................................................................................
Background Information ...............................................................................................
Pre-lab Questions ..........................................................................................................
Equipment .....................................................................................................................
Preparing for this NANSLO Lab Activity .........................................................................
Experimental Procedure ...............................................................................................
Exercise 1: Measuring the Velocity of the Sled ............................................................
Post- Exercise Questions ..............................................................................................
(Optional) Exercise 2: Statistical Analysis ....................................................................
Creative Commons Licensing ........................................................................................
U.S. Department of Labor Information .........................................................................
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LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
After completing this laboratory experiment, you should be able to do the following things:
1. Determine the relationship between position and time for a body moving with constant velocity.
2. Apply elementary statistics to experimentally observed data to arrive at the value of the
constant velocity of the body.
3. Demonstrate graphically and mathematically, from the observed experimental data, the
relationship between distance and time when velocity is constant.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
In this experiment, we will investigate motion without acceleration. Motion without
acceleration is uniform (constant velocity) motion, which means it describes the motion of an
object that has constant speed and constant direction. Accelerated motion is the motion of
something with either a changing speed or a changing direction.
Our goal is to determine the relationship between the position and time for an object moving
with a constant velocity. You can do this by simply noting the time for the object to reach
certain positions. First however you must put an object into constant velocity motion. One way
to do this is with a constant velocity motor. Many motor driven toys and model cars work this
way. In this experiment however, you will use a non-motorized object. Unfortunately, most
non-motorized objects don't move with a constant velocity because they slow down and stop
after a relatively short period of time. In order to keep an object from slowing down, you must
remove friction. Later you will learn that an object moving with no friction and no external
forces acting on it will move forever with a constant velocity.
To remove friction you will use an air track which is a linear track that has many holes through
which air blows, suspending a sliding sled. The sled moves along on a layer of air and does not
actually touch the underlying track. The air track is a one-dimensional version of the common
air hockey table which has a suspended puck free to move in two dimensions. To start the sled
moving, a small rubber band is used to give it a push when you release the sled from the
launcher by de-energizing an electromagnet on the launcher.
The position equation for an object moving with a constant velocity is:
𝐷 = 𝑣𝑡
where D is the distance traveled, v is the constant velocity, and t is time. Since v is constant, this
equation represents a proportional relationship between distance traveled and time.
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PRE-LAB QUESTIONS:
1. Will a heavier sled have a faster velocity than the lighter sled? Why or why not?
2. Complete this sentence: The plot of velocity vs. “time at each photogate” should have a
slope of _________________ (“greater than zero”, “zero”, or “less than zero”).
EQUIPMENT:
1.
2.
3.
Paper
Pencil/pen
Computer with Internet access (for the remote laboratory and for data analysis)
PREPARING FOR THIS NANSLO LAB ACTIVITY:
Read and understand the information below before you proceed with the lab!
Scheduling an Appointment Using the NANSLO Scheduling System
Your instructor has reserved a block of time through the NANSLO Scheduling System for you to
complete this activity. For more information on how to set up a time to access this NANSLO lab
activity, see www.wiche.edu/nanslo/scheduling-software.
Students Accessing a NANSLO Lab Activity for the First Time
For those accessing a NANSLO laboratory for the first time, you may need to install software on
your computer to access the NANSLO lab activity. Use this link for detailed instructions on
steps to complete prior to accessing your assigned NANSLO lab activity –
www.wiche.edu/nanslo/lab-tutorials.
Video Tutorial for RWSL: A short video demonstrating how to use the Remote Web-based
Science Lab (RWSL) control panel for the air track can be viewed at
http://www.wiche.edu/nanslo/lab-tutorials#airtrack.
NOTE: Disregard the conference number in this video tutorial.
AS SOON AS YOU CONNECT TO THE RWSL CONTROL PANEL: Click on the yellow button at the
bottom of the screen (you may need to scroll down to see it). Follow the directions on the pop
up window to join the voice conference and talk to your group and the Lab Technician.
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EXPERIMENTAL PROCEDURE:
Read and understand these instructions BEFORE starting the actual lab procedure and collecting
data. Feel free to “play around” a little bit and explore the capabilities of the equipment before
you start the actual procedure.
Summary of Experimental Procedure:
The approach to the determination of the value of the constant velocity of the sled will be to
generate a statistically significant set of data and calculate the mean, the median and the mode
of the sample distribution. A total of at least ten "runs" will be made in which four discrete
points in the linear path will be recorded. The time and distance data will be analyzed to
determine the relationship between distance and time under these conditions.
Instantaneous Velocity Values:
The timing data display (Figure 1) consists of the eight numerical fields labeled "Photogate 1, 2,
3, and 4". The first number is the time value in seconds that has elapsed since the sled was
launched and the leading edge of the flag mounted on the sled coincided with the
prepositioned photogate. The second value is the time in seconds that has elapsed since the
leading edge of the flag initiated the signal and the trailing edge interrupted the signal. Thus,
the time between these two values is how long it takes the flag on the sled (length = 10.0 cm)
to pass through one photogate. This way, we can measure the instantaneous velocity as the
sled passes through each photogate.
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Figure 1: RWSL Air Track Control Panel “Data” Tab.
EXERCISE 1: Measuring the Velocity of the Sled
For all steps involving moving sleds, use the robot arm, if available, or ask the Lab Technician to
assist you.
Data Collection:
1. Ask the Lab Technician to ensure that the launcher attachment is installed on the
electromagnet.
2. Using the robot arm (if available), or asking the Lab Technician to assist, place each sled onto the
electronic scale and determine the mass.
3. Ensure that the air pump is turned on, and place the sled onto the air track.
4. Click the gray “Click to Capture Sled” button to energize the electromagnet and use the
robot arm/Lab Technician to reload the sled onto the magnet.
5. Ensure that the air track is not inclined or declined (it must be level).
6. Make sure Trial Number 1 is selected on the “Controls” tab, and click the green “Click to
Launch Sled” button.
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7. Select the “Data” tab and make sure the data table fills in for Trial 1. Write down these
numbers to analyze at a later time.
8. Return to the “Controls” tab and increment the Trial Number so you don’t over-write
your previous data.
9. Repeat for trials 2 through 10 to get a total of ten runs. Rotate control of the control
panel to allow each student in your group to collect at least one set of data. You can
collect more data than this if you want to and have time.
10. Repeat this entire process for the other sled, which has a different mass.
11. Record all data in an appropriate table in your notebook or on your computer.
Analysis (can be done after your lab period if you run out of time):
12. Prepare a data table in Excel and enter all the times from your 10 runs of data.
13. Calculate the average of each time measurement, so you end up with just 8 data points for
each sled.
14. Calculate the instantaneous velocity of the sleds as they pass through each photogate.
15. Plot the four velocities you calculate (y-axis) vs. the time that it was half way through each
photogate (x-axis). For example, if it entered the photogate at 1.0 seconds, and exited at 1.14
seconds, then it was halfway through at 1.07 seconds. (NOTE: choose Scatter Plot, and make
sure that the column of times is to the left of the column of velocities.)
16. Add a trend line to determine the value of the slope.
POST-EXERCISE QUESTIONS:
1. Are the values of g the same or different for the two different mass sleds?
2. What was the velocity of each sled as it moved down the air track?
a. Was this velocity truly constant?
b. What evidence do you have to support your conclusion?
3. What are the sources of uncertainty that contributed to error in your results ?
4. Did the results of this experiment agree with your expectations or not? Explain .
(OPTIONAL) EXERCISE 2: Statistical Analysis
Calculate the average velocity at each photogate for each sled. Perform a t-test to determine if
the average value of the velocity at photogate 1 is statistically different from the average
velocity at photogate 4 for each sled.
1. Is the velocity of the lighter sled at photogate 1 statistically the same or different from
its velocity at photogate 4? (Support your answer with statistical calculations.)
2. Is the velocity of the heavier sled at photogate 1 statistically the same or different from
its velocity at photogate 4? (Support your answer with statistical calculations.)
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3. Is the average velocity of the lighter sled at photogate 4 statistically the same or
different than the average velocity of the heavier sled at photogate 4? (Support your
answer with statistical calculations.)
4. Calculate the instantaneous velocity at Photogate 4 for each data set for the lighter sled.
You will have 10 values of velocity. Quantify the error in the average velocity at
photogate
4.
For more information about NANSLO, visit www.wiche.edu/nanslo.
All material produced subject to:
Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 United States License 3
This product was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S.
Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.
The product was created by the grantee and does not necessarily
reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. The
Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or
assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such
information, including any information on linked sites and
including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its
completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued
availability, or ownership.
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